India: Defense Minister Sends Strong Message on China Threat, "Zero-Sum Game" of USA

In what is perceived as a stern warning to China, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh declared on Friday that if India is harmed, no one will be spared.

"India has emerged as a powerful country under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is on its way to become one of the world's top three economies," Rajnath Singh said in a speech to the Indian-American community in San Francisco.

US, India Agree to Additional Exercises To Strengthen Ties

S Jaishankar and Rajnath Singh were in the United States for the fourth India-US 2+2 ministerial conversation. With intermittent tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), India and China have been embroiled in a border dispute.

In June 2020, a tense brawl devolved into hand-to-hand battle with clubs, stones, and fists, killing 20 Indian troops. In the fight, China says it lost four soldiers. The two parties have undertaken 15 rounds of talks so far to try to settle the standoffs in eastern Ladakh, as per Live Mint.

Both India and China have evacuated soldiers from various areas around the northern and southern banks of the Pangong Tso Lake, as well as Gogra and the Galwan Valley, since February of last year although they have maintained additional personnel as part of their deployment.

Without directly addressing American pressure on Russia as a result of the Ukraine conflict, Singh stated that India does not believe in a "zero-sum game." India believes in a bilateral partnership that is "win-win" for both nations despite Washington's concerns over India's stance on the Ukraine issue and its choice to buy discounted Russian oil.

The amicable messages from US and Indian officials this week contrasted sharply with the unpleasant tensions between the two nations only days before over their respective positions on the Ukraine crisis. Both have agreed to conduct additional "high-end exercises" to strengthen connections with like-minded countries in the face of China's persistent problems. They also agreed to strengthen defense, cybersecurity, space, and marine security cooperation.

India Still Rejects Condemning Russia

These positive actions, according to analysts, show that the US does not want to alienate India in its attempt to control China, and that the 2+2 meetings have shown that bilateral ties are progressing. Days before the discussions, US President Joe Biden described India's position on Ukraine as "shaky" while a US source cautioned that siding with Moscow would have "severe and long-term ramifications."

According to SCMP, India stayed steady in its refusal to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, instead promoting diplomacy to settle the conflict and implying respect for each nation's sovereignty. The reluctance to criticize Russia arises from the fact that it is India's major armaments supplier, which is thought to be crucial in dealing with China and the border standoff. The fact that India continues to import Russian energy is also a source of disagreement, though Jaishankar believes Western fears are unfounded.

Meanwhile, despite poor ties caused by the extended military stalemate in eastern Ladakh, bilateral trade between India and China climbed by 15.3 percent to over $31 billion in the first quarter of this year, according to trade figures issued by the Chinese Customs on Wednesday.

China's exports to India increased by $27.1 billion in the three months from January to March. Last year, bilateral trade between India and China reached a new high of almost $125 billion, as per NDTV. The increasing trend looked to be continuing, as bilateral trade in the first quarter of 2022 totaled $31.96 billion, up 15.3 percent from the same time last year, according to trade figures issued by the General Administration of Customs.

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